easy as lovers go
by softjily
Summary: Lily loves the UK women's hockey team, so of course James decides to hate it.


It was a Saturday night and Lily had dragged the girls to a pub so they could watch the women's ice hockey semi-finals. The girl in question seemed to be the most energetic fan present on the establishment, dressed in full UK gear, with the team's jersey, jacket, beanie and scarf.

"Lily, calm down. The game hasn't even started and you're already yelling," complained an annoyed Marlene, pulling at her friend's arm.

"I'm trying to hype up the crowd, Marls! This place is dead and our girls are trying to win Olympic gold, dammit!" came Lily's heated reply. "Besides, I'm really excited for this 'cause I know they're gonna win and I wanna rub it all over Potter's face."

"You wanna rub _what_ on my face, Evans?" came a voice from behind her. "Honestly, I know I'm a catch, but try to control yourself a little bit, will ya?"

Their friends all laughed as Lily groaned and turned to face James, who was wearing an overconfident smirk. "Oh, shove it, Potter. The only reason we invited you is so I can see your unpatriotic face hit the floor when my girls win this game."

He eyed her up and down, absorbing all the hockey paraphernalia she was wearing. "I think you're patriotic enough for the both of us, love."

Lily glared at James as Sirius intervened. "Alright, you two! Leave the tension to the bedroom, okay? Now who's going with me to the bar to get the first round?"

"I'll go! Anything to get away from these two and their sexual tension," Mary was already dragging Sirius by the arm before she'd finished talking.

James draped an arm across Lily's shoulders, ignored the redhead's protests and asked their friends, "Aw, c'mon guys! We're not that bad, it's just some friendly banter, right Lils?"

She rolled her eyes and took his arms off her. "First of all: yes, we're that bad. Second of all: don't bloody touch me."

As Sirius and Mary came back with their drinks, they heard the TV commentator announce that the game was about to start. As the players got on the ice, Lily cheered loud enough to make up for the rest of the group's lack of enthusiasm. James could only look at her and let out a fond chuckle as she jumped up and down when her favourite player greeted the crowd.

As the game started, Lily became increasingly excited – and drunk, but that was everyone. After each goal, each foul, she felt the need to scream at someone's face – usually James.

"Did you see that, Potter? This is peak excellence. The Canadians can only wish they're as good as this," she had the tendency of ephasizing random words when she was drunk.

"Well, I think they did wish to be as good as them," he smiled, "and they got their wish, 'cause no matter what, your girls are not getting that gold medal."

Their banter continued as it always did throughout the game, and during one of the breaks Marlene pulled Lily to the side to have a little conversation.

"Honestly, Lily, just fucking shag the boy and put him out of his misery!" she said in a loud whisper, earning a look of utter exasperation from her friend.

"First of all, keep your voice down. Second of all, _what the bloody hell are you talking about?_ "

Marlene rolled her eyes, thinking that for someone who got top marks her whole life, Lily was really good at being dumb. "I literally don't understand how you can be so daft about some things."

"What the fuck do you mean?"

The blonde sighed. "Just… try to see what's right in front of you, okay?" And with that, she turned around to talk to Dorcas about some cute girl that was eyeing her up at the bar, leaving Lily to sort out her thoughts.

The redhead continued to stare at the place her friend had been moments before until Remus called her name and told her the game was back on. She shook her head and focused on the match.

* * *

"I _told_ you they'd win! My girls are here for their gold and your little Canadian team's got nothing on them!" Lily was keeping her promise to rub her victory all over James' face, yelling on top of a chair and just enjoying the team's triumph as if it were her own.

"Okay, okay. I'll give you that one. This was an amazing game, it's true. Now would you please get down before you fall and injure your pretty arse?"

She let herself be helped by him, holding on tightly – maybe more than was strictly necessary – as he got her out of the chair. Remus watched the scene unfold with an amused look on his face, thinking it was only a matter of time before Lily stopped being so stubborn and gave in to his friend.

"Okay, you idiots!," exclaimed Sirius. "I propose we have a little game of our own tomorrow before the final. We'll go to the ice rink downtown and the loser team has to streak around campus on Monday."

"Black, are you aware that literally none of us can skate?" said an incredulous Marlene.

"That's the fun of it! It'll be a disaster, can you think of anything more fun than this?"

"I'm in!"

The whole group stared in shock at Lily. She really was the last person they thought would accept Sirius' crazy idea.

"Okay, if Evans is in, then I am too," decided James, once again putting his arm around Lily. This time, she didn't shrug him off immediately, and instead enjoyed a few seconds of the boy's warmth before apparently coming to her senses and brushing his arm off her.

The group divided the teams and scheduled the time the match would take place. Lily's team consisted of Marlene, Dorcas and Remus; while James' was composed of Peter, Sirius and Mary. Everyone decided to call it a night so they could rest and be ready to win the game.

* * *

The next day, James woke up to his vibrating phone on the bedside table. He groaned, already regretting that last tequila shot as he felt the early stages of a heavy hangover take form. He unlocked his phone and had to do a double take as he saw Lily's name on the screen.

 _ **Ready to lose TWICE today, Potter?**_

 _a potter never loses, evans ;)_

 **Oh, really? What about that time we bet over who could drink more firewhisky and you barfed all over the common room?**

 _shut up, this never happened_

 _ **You know the truth, stop lying to yourself, LOSER. Be prepared for tonight, I'm gonna destroy you xx**_

James chuckled at that last text. Only Lily could threaten a person like that and send kisses right after it.

It was then that he looked at the time and swore. It was already noon and he had to get lunch before meeting the boys downtown to rent the rink and get all the necessary gear.

When he got there, Sirius was already charming the front-desk girl into freeing up the schedule and giving them the ice for the whole afternoon.

"He can charm his way into anything, can't he?" Remus said as a way of greeting.

"It's one of the few things I'm sure of in life," James said, chuckling as he watched the girl give Sirius her number. Remus laughed too as he eyed their shameless friend.

"So, sleep well?"

"More like slept too much, actually. The only reason I woke up on time was because Lily texted me," James an unconscious smile made his way to his face when he said Lily's name.

"Oh, really?" Remus raised his eyebrows. "You two looked chummy last night, eh?"

"You think so?" he immediately got this eager hopeful look in his eyes.

"Yeah, I actually think you're growing on her," he paused for a few seconds, and then, "But do you really think that banter and teasing is the best way to win her over?"

"Moony, this has literally been our relationship for years. I literally have no idea how else to act around her."

"I know, I know. Just maybe try another approach on her? She might like it."

Sirius arrived right then, bragging about how he got a date _and_ the ice rink reservation all in one go. James thought about what Remus said for an extra moment before shrugging it off and focusing on teasing Sirius.

* * *

James decided to go early to the rink so he could see if everything was set up for the match. When he got there, he realised he was not the only one who had the same idea.

Lily was skating – or trying to – around the ice, struggling to keep upright as she tried to balance herself on her skates.

"Oi, Evans!" James called and startled Lily, making her almost topple over.

She let out a series of curses and glared at him. "Are you trying to get me killed?"

"Shit, sorry. Didn't mean to scare you," his hand went immediately to his hair, her eyes following the movement as she tried to skate over to the boards.

"No, it's okay. Why are you here so early?"

"I could ask the same thing to you. Don't you think it's a little unfair to practice before anyone else?"

"Did you see me skate? I'm a bloody disaster, 10 extra minutes on the ice isn't gonna make a difference," he laughed at that, but then remembered that he didn't know how to skate, either.

"Well, I'm pretty sure none of us knows how to skate either, so we're even," he started heading to the benches so he could also gear up and head to the ice.

Lily went back to her skating struggle and James followed soon after, skating beside her.

"Now who's the cheat, huh?" she teased.

"Well, I felt like I had to stoop down to your level so could have a shot at this."

She laughed, leaning forward and losing her footing, trying to grab at anything to not to fall. James attempted to help her but it just made him falter and lose his footing as well.

What happened next was a disaster of flailing limbs and trying to control their skates so none of them would be seriously hurt. In the end, James fell first and pulled Lily along after him, making her fall on top of him and hit her forehead into is chin. They gasped for air and James tried to get Lily's hair out of his face as she tried to get off him.

They heard applause and looked up to see the rest of the gang dying of laughter at their expense.

"Smooth, Prongs! That was _real_ smooth," yelled a breathless Sirius, trying to control his laughter.

They cursed in unison and finally managed to get up and skate back to the boards. Their friends were still snickering and teasing them and Lily looked like a tomato, her face almost matching her hair in colour.

"Alright, alright. That's enough, guys," James could see how uncomfortable Lily was and just wanted their friends to stop mocking her.

Remus saw her discomfort too and intervened. "Yeah, everyone shut up and put on your gear. Let's get started already."

When everything was set up and everyone was on the ice, Sirius relayed the rules. "There are no rules."

Remus rolled his eyes and smacked him across the head as Peter laughed.

"Geez, I was joking, Moony. The rules are: it's a 30-minute game and each team has to score as many goals as they can before time's up. Pretty standard stuff, right?" everyone nodded and he concluded with, "And please remember that we're standing on deadly blades here, so try not to die or kill anyone."

They divided each team's positions and started the game. And as was expected, it was a complete mess. 10 minutes into the match and every single person on the ice had fallen at least one time – including Sirius, who claimed to be a natural at skating.

When a little over 20 minutes had passed, the two teams were tied and everyone was exhausted, desperate for the match to be over so they could head over to the pub and drink some beer. Lily had the puck and was skating towards the goal, hoping to score and end this bloody match. Peter saw the opportunity to cut her off and went for it but was skating too fast and lost control.

"Peter, slow down!" came Sirius' cry when he saw the disaster that was about to happen.

It was too late, though. They were both staking too fast and the collision sent Lily flying to the boards, her body falling to the ground right after. James cursed and skated as fast as he could to her, calling her name over and over.

When he reached her, she was coming to her senses. He threw himself on the ground beside her and pulled her into him as she gasped in pain. "What is it? Tell me where it hurts, Lils."

"My foot! Something's wrong with it," she said in between gasps, holding James' hand tightly. He reached for her skate, meaning to untie it.

"No! Don't try to take the skate off, it might make things worse," intervened Remus. "We're gonna have to carry her until we get to a hospital."

Peter came forward to help but James snapped at him. "NO! You've already done enough," he ignored the look of hurt in Peter's face and turned to his other side. "Sirius, help me take off my skates so I can carry her to the car."

Remus, Mary and Dorcas made themselves useful by gathering all the gear and hockey-related paraphernalia while James and Sirius handled Lily. Marlene got out of her hockey uniform and followed the boys out of the rink and to the parking lot, determined to not leave her friend's side.

The next hour passed by with Sirius driving like a madman, James yelling at nurses at the hospital and Marlene holding Lily's hand and trying to keep her awake as she fell in and out of consciousness.

They got a room and by the time the doctor came out of it to talk to them, James was close to a nervous breakdown. He told them Lily had a mild concussion and a fractured ankle, which was already in a cast. They had given her some medicine so she could rest and recover her energies.

James sighed and thanked the doctor. "You two should go and meet the rest of the group at the pub, I'm gonna be here for a while," he said to the pair seated beside him.

"Are you sure? We can stay with you, at least until she wakes up," said a concerned Marlene.

"No, you deserve some fun after this mess. Grab a pint for me, will ya?" James said with a tired smile.

"Call me if you need anything, okay?" Sirius said, pulling James into a hug. "C'mon, Mckinnon. I'll let you buy me a beer," Marlene laughed and smacked his chest as they both waved goodbye to James and left.

* * *

Lily awoke to blinding lights and the sound of cursing. She was confused for a second, looking around her and wondering why she was at a hospital, when she remembered the hockey game and herself slamming into the boards. Her head hurt like hell.

It was then that she noticed the source of the cursing. James was dragging a big TV into the room, being followed by a nurse wearing a huge frown on her face.

"Mr. Potter, I already told you you're not allowed to do this! We have a TV in the room!" she sounded like she had already had this conversation with him at least five times.

"M'am, do you seriously call that a television? My phone is bigger than that tiny thing, for Christ's sake!" he never stopped moving and at this point the TV was fully into the room.

The nurse let out an exasperated huff and gave up, turning on her back and going back to her station.

James did a little victory dance and abruptly stopped when he heard Lily laugh. He turned in her direction, his neck already turning red from embarrassment. "How much of that did you see?"

"Pretty much everything, I guess," she said trying to control her giggles as the redness spread to his cheeks. "Oh my God, I don't think I've ever seen you this embarrassed. Chill, I won't tell anyone about the dance."

"Somehow I don't believe you, Evans," it was at this moment that he seemed to remember where and why they were there. "Shit, did I wake you up? How are you feeling? Are you in pain?" he had rushed to her side, desperate to see if she was okay.

"Wow, calm down. I'm fine, just have a bit of a headache, but I think that's normal when you smash your head on glass, right?"

"Pretty much the standard reaction, yes," he chuckled.

"So, what's the TV for, anyways?"

"Oh yeah, I have to finish setting it up so we can watch the game. Don't think that just because you're on a hospital bed, I won't brag about the Canadians winning gold, Evans."

"Yeah, right. Keep dreaming of that, traitor."

He chuckled and went back to the wires, trying to make sense of the tangled mess. Lily watched as he only made a bigger mess, wondering how this ridiculous boy even existed in her life.

He finished plugging everything and turned the TV on the sports channel, seeing that there were only a few minutes left until the game started. "So, what to you want to eat? We have flavourless red jelly and flavourless purple jelly. What's your choice?"

"Um, I'm not so hungry right now, let's just watch the game."

He shrugged and made his way to the uncomfortable couch in the room, ready to watch the fated game.

"James, why are you being so nice to me?" she said as she watched him for a few seconds.

He chuckled lightly at the question. "Damn, do I really treat you this badly on a daily basis?"

She bumbs her shoulder with his, rolling her eyes. "No, dummy. It's just that I'm used to teasing and banter. It's a nice change," they looked at each other for a few seconds, completely ignoring the TV.

"Yeah?" he was trying to act cool but Lily could see how nervous he was.

"Yeah. Thank you for bringing the TV and staying here with me, by the way." "Oh, it was nothing," he paused.

"Thinking again, it was certainly a lot of work, you know. I had to carry you here and everything. I think you should have a drink with me. As a thank you, of course."

She laughed in disbelief. He was really impossible. "Is that you trying to coerce me into going on a date with you?"

"Well, when you put it like that…"

"I accept."

His wide eyes snapped back at her. "Really? 'Cause I don't want you to feel like you have to, I wasn't trying to force you or anything-"

"James!" she interrupted. "You're not forcing me to do anything, I accepted because I want to, okay?" he nodded, looking a little dazed. "Now shut up and get off this horrible couch, come and watch the game with me."

James nodded again, still dazed, thinking about how this could be happening. He got up and laid next to her, minding her leg so he wouldn't disturb it. She snuggled into him, sighing as she turned her attention to the game.

Truth was that lying here, with her head on James bloody Potter's chest, Lily honestly didn't care about who won the gold medal. She was already a champion just for having this messy boy in her life. Everything else was secondary.

(That doesn't mean she didn't scream as loud as she could in his ear when the UK team won gold and destroyed the Canadian team, though).


End file.
